The Marvel Cinematic Universe came out guns blazing with its first foray into streaming television on Disney+. One thing the MCU brings to its platform is its love of diverse stories that all have varying strengths.
So far, Disney+ has been home to WandaVision, the Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany-led show that paid homage to sitcoms of old, and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, the globetrotting buddy-superhero show that reckoned with a whole bunch of villains. Both shows are quite different and, as such, have been able to excel at disparate aspects.
WandaVision: Production Design
When it comes to the many technical elements of television, WandaVision was a masterwork. Each episode had an impeccable production design that turned the sets into pastiches of the houses lived in by the Bradys, the Petries, the Ricardos, and more.
Not to mention, the costume design was always on point, and the shooting style resembled each era of sitcoms the show paid homage to. It was across-the-board brilliance that of the kind expected from the MCU.
Falcon: Action Set Pieces
On the other hand, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier managed to deliver a movie-level action sequence in each of its six episodes. WandaVision was definitely not interested in too much of the action side of the MCU, but FATWS more than compensated for the punch-lusting Marvel diehards.
From the beginning of the series, as Sam Wilson soared through a canyon, the tone was set for some thrilling sequences. That promise carried over all the way to the finale when Sam flew again - with a certain shield in tow.
WandaVision: Musical Cues
A special element of WandaVision came from the musical side of things. After all, the team enlisted Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez to orchestrate period-specific television theme songs for each episode.
This allowed for a Marvel opening to sound quite similar to theme songs for Bewitched, Full House, and The Office. It was a stroke of genius to bring the Oscar winners behind Frozen to help elevate WandaVision even higher.
Falcon: Buddy Dynamic
In WandaVision, the romance between Wanda and Vision was certainly strengthened, but it's hard to beat a fun buddy hero dynamic. The feeling of camaraderie between Sam and Bucky was earned because it was genuine.
This friendship also evolved over time. Yes, the two were snarky with one another, but they were also open and honest by the end. The two guided one another to a better place than the one where they started. When Bucky shows up for revelry in Louisiana, it's a truly heartwarming scene.
WandaVision: The Television Model
One solid aspect of the two MCU series to date is that they both have felt like television shows rather than overwrought "six-hour movies." WandaVision definitely embraced the episodic nature of television to a much greater extent, though.
Each episode had its own distinct feeling and told contained stories that teased the larger narrative but largely wrapped their own stories. Considering it was also the MCU's first television show and a tribute to the history of sitcoms, an episodic feel was incredibly welcomed.
Falcon: Thanos Ramifications
The ramifications of everything that happened with all three snaps and the villainy of Thanos in the MCU are touched on slightly through the character of Monica Rambeau in WandaVision. However, much of FATWS revolved entirely around a post-blip world.
It was fascinating to see some of those stories play out on the ground level as the show looked at ideas such as: how the public reacted to the loss of Cap, how governments tried to piece the world back together, how Sam tried to just make a living. The show reckoned with consequences at a level not seen since Civil War's reaction to Age of Ultron.
WandaVision: Wanda's Characterization
One of the major accomplishments of WandaVision is that it turned its two titular heroes into genuinely compelling characters. It's not that fans didn't care about them before, but rather there was not a whole lot of screen time in the ensemble movies to let them grow.
On WandaVision, though (and in the penultimate episode, in particular), the character of Wanda Maximoff became one of the most well-developed in the MCU. By grounding her in something relatable (a love of television comedies) and isolating her for her own growth arc, she became a top-tier MCU character. It will be thrilling to watch her story continue in the Doctor Strange sequel.
Falcon: The Surprise Cameo
Through no fault of WandaVision, many fans worked themselves up into a frenzy over what surprise cameos might color the show in its denouement. Ultimately, nobody visited Westview besides the characters that fans had seen all along. However, there was a massive surprise in the back half of FATWS.
Julia Louis-Dreyfus came to play as Valentina Allegra de Fontaine. Many have speculated that she will head a team of anti-heroes going forward in the MCU. Either way, it was a super fun surprise to see the woman behind Elaine Benes and Selina Meyer pop up in the MCU.
WandaVision: An Engaging Mystery
Mystery television shows can be a lot of fun when done right (think Lost or Wilfred). WandaVision definitely joins that pantheon with a truly thrilling puzzle that unfolded each week with a few clues dropped here and there to unravel what was happening to Wanda.
The success of this engaging mystery is that it never became too convoluted. Yes, the theories spiraled out of control. But the mystery told by WandaVision was, at its core, quite simple and rooted in the love shared by two characters. That's what made it sensational.
Falcon: Race In America
While FATWS had a couple of teases (the Power Broker, anyone?), it was largely uninterested in any sort of overarching mystery for the show. Instead, the team behind the series grappled more with the history and current implications of race in the U.S. and what it would mean for a Black man to become Captain America.
Through the history of Isaiah Bradley, the show asked really interesting questions that had seemed unlikely the MCU would ever truly probe. His wrongful, horrible imprisonment and subsequent experimentation and cover-up were harrowing to consider. It left the show feeling more honest and important than if it had simply remained a Lethal Weapon-esque romp.